Grab bucket



W. H. RAY

GRAB BUCKET Feb. 2, 1960 2 Sheets-Sheet l Filed neo. 18, 195'? A #om ey W. H. RAY

GRAB BUCKET Feb. Z, 1960 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 Filed Dec. 18, 1957 GRAB BUCKET william H. Ray, vandergrif'f, Pa., assigner to United States Steel Corporation, a corporation of New Jersey Appii'eaaen December 1s, 1957, Serial No. 703,620

6 claims.- \(ci. s7'1s4) l The present invention relates generally to apparatus for handling material and more particularly/'to an improved grab bucket especially suitable f or use with lift cranes and the like for hoisting and conveying bulk materials such as earth, coal, sand, etc. l

Prior to myy invention grab buckets were usually one or the other of two conventional types. In one type the bucket was suspended by one cable and a second cable was used to operate the opening and closing mechanism of the bucket. -In the other type, the bucket was suspended by a cable and the bucket opening'and closing mechanism was operated by an electric hoist mounted on the bucket. 4l-Ieither of thesetwo types of grabbuckets'could be used effectively on the lift hook of an electric overhead travel?A ing crane unless the crane was equipped with a special winding drum to control the opening and closing mechanism operating cable of the iir'st type'or thevelectrical l power cable of the hoisting mechanism of the second type.

It is, accordingly, a primary object of my invention to provide a grab bucket for use with a lift crane which may be suspended from the lift hook of the crane by means of a bail so arranged with respect to the suspension means of the bucket that the bucket can be opened and closed by horizontal movement of the bail.

This and other objects will become more apparent after referring to the following specicationy and attached drawings, in which:

Figure 1 is a vertical sectional view showing the grab bucket of the invention in closed position;

Figure 2 is a view similar to Figure 1 showing the bucket in open position;

Figure 3 is avertical sectional view taken on the line III- III of IFigure l;

Figure 4 is a partial vertical sectional view taken on theline IV-IV of Figure 2; l

Figure 5 is a view similar to Figure 4 showing the bail of the bucket in an intermediate position; and

Figure 6 is a viewsirnilar to Figure 5 but looking toward the opposite side of thel support-'housing showing the bail partially raised in engagement with the c-urved guide.

`Referring more particularly to the drawings reference numeral 2 designates generally the grab bucket of the invention suspended from the lift hook 4 of a crane (not shown).

The grab bucket 2 includes a pair of hinged bucket halves 6 having inner edges S adapted to mate so that the halves form a receptacle when brought together, as shown in Figure 1. The upper portions of the inner edges 8 of the halves 6 are in the shape of anges 10. The flanges of one bucket half overlap and slidably engage the flanges of the other bucket half, as best shown in Figure 2. The anged portions 10 of the bucket halvesV are hinged on a common shaft 12 which has its ends journaled in the overlapping flange portions 10 and extends transversely of the grab bucket adjacent its upper edge.

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:Each ofthe bucket halves 6 is formed with spaced side walls 14 and an outer end wall 16 which extends between the bottom and outer edges of the spaced side Walls of each bucket half.

A support housing 18 which is provided with four sides is disposed above the bucket halves andis provided with a pair of spaced inner walls 20 which define spaces 22 on two sides of the support housing. A pair of spaced pivot pins 24 are mounted on each of the inner walls 20 and eit-v tends therefrom through thespace 22 and the outer Wall of the support housing adjacent thereto. v

A rigid support rod 26 is pivotally mounted by its upper end on each of the pins 24v and depends downwardly therefrom toward the bucket halves 6.

A transversely extending support shaft 28, which may be square in cross-section, is rigidly supported by its ends" in the spaced side walls "14 of each bucket half by means of mounting plates 30.

normal to their respective shafts 28. The bottom ends'.V

of each of the rigid support rods 26 is pivotally connected with theV end of a lever arm toward the outer end wall of its respective bucket half, as best shown in Figures 1 and 2.

The grab' bucket 2 of the invention is supported on the lift hook 4 by means of a bail 34 which is disposed above the bucket halves 6 for vertical and horizontal movement in the support housing 18. Two pairs of cables 36, which may be in the form of chains, are pivotally attached by their upper ends to the bottom of the bail 34 and depend therefrom toward the bucket halves 6; The bottom ends of the cables 36 are attached one to the end of each of the lever arms 30 toward the inner edges of the bucket halves'.` v

The bail 34 is Arelatively at and is provided with an intermediate portion 40 of reduced cross-sectional area forming laterally extending `upper shoulders 42 and laterally extending lower shoulders 44.

VA bottom-slotted, vertically split lift block 46 is pr vided on the interior of support housing 18 between thel inner walls 20 on'one side of the vertical center line of the support housing, as best shown in Figure 2. The lift block 46 is formed bytwo spaced projections on the interior of one of the side walls 4S of support housing 18 which extend normal to the inner walls 20.

- A vertically split curved 'guide is formed byl ribs 50 on the interior ofthe wall of vsupport housing 18 opposite to the wall having lift block 46 thereon for guiding the b'ail'34 toward the vertical center line of supportrhousing 18 when the bail is lifted. f I Y In operation, when it is ydesired to lift the grab bucket from a resting position with the bucket halves closed, as shown in Figure 1, the crane operator manipulates the bail 34 so that it is lifted along the vertical center line of the support housing 18 away from the lift block 46. This permits the chains 36 to lift the inner ends of the lever arms 32 and keep the inner edges of the bucket halves together. When it is desired to open the grab bucket after it has been lowered to rest on a surface, the crane operator moves the bail horizontally toward the side of the support housing 18 on which the lift block 46 is located. Then further raising of bail causes the lower shoulders 44 to be engaged by the lift block 46 so that slack is created in chains 36 and further lifting of bail 34 causes the bucket halves to pivot on the lower ends of the rigid support rods 26 and open, as best shown in Figure 2. Then after the grab bucket has been emptied it is again lowered and the bail moved away from lift block 46 so that it can be raised along the center line of Patented Feb. 2, 1960 sAAA support housing 1,8 to effect raising of the hinged flanges and closing of the bucket halves 6.

Thus, in operation the grab bucket of the invention 1s carried by a single `crane lift hookr and the bucket canY be opened and c losed when it is restingv on a supportingsurfae by shifting the position of the bail horizontally in the support housing 18. In the closed position, as shown in Figure l, the 'grab bucket of the invention is supported by the chains 36 attached to the bail 34. In the open position; as shown in Figure 2, the bucket is supported by the rigid supporting rods 26 through pivot pins 24, support housing 18, lift block 46, and bail 34. In use, e.g. for removing sludge from the bottom of a pickling tank, the open bucket is lowered into place on the sludge in the bottom of the pickling tank. While the bucket is resting on the sludge in the bottom of the tank lift hook 4 is lowered to allow the upper shoulders 42 of thek bail 34 to -rest onA thetop of the housing 18, asbest shown in Figure 5. In this position the shoulders '44 of bai1`34 are not engaged with lift block 46 and horizontal movement of the lift hook 4 will move the Ibail 34 out of position with respect to the lift block 46. After the lift hook 4 has been moved horizontally to permit thebail to clear the lift block the lift hook 4 is raised and as tension is applied to chains 36 the bucket halves close around the load. After the load has been conveyed to a dumping station the bucket is opened by reversing the sequence of the Steps followed inpicking up the load.

While one embodiment of my invention has been shown and described, it will be apparent that otherv adaptations and modifications may be made without departing from the scope of the following claims.

I claim:

- Vl. A grab bucket comprising a pair of hinged bucket halves having inner edges adapted to mate so that said halves form a receptacle when brought together, said bucket halves each having spaced side walls and an outer wall extending between the bottom 'and outer edges of said side walls, the side Walls of one of said bucket halves being hinged together with the side walls of thev other of said bucket halves at the upper ends of said inner edges, a support housing disposed above said bucket halves,'a bail above said bucket halves adapted to be suspended from a litt hook with a portion thereof disposed for vertical and horizontal movement in said support housing, means providing a releasable connection between said bail and said housing, a pair of flexible elongated support means suspended from'said bail, a pair of elongated rigid support means depending from said support housing, means connectingsaid rigid and ilexible support means to said bucket halves with the lower ends of the flexible support means spaced inwardly of the lower ends ofthe rigid support means, said exible support means being of such length relative to the rigid support means that the exible support means are inoperative when the Y parts of said releasable connection are connected, said rigid support meansb'eing of such length relative to the exible support means that the rigid support means are operative when the parts of said releasable connection are connected to support said bucket halves adjacent the outer walls thereof so that the bucket halves remain open and the receptacle is not formed when the bail is raised.

Z. A grab bucket as defined by claim l in which said means connecting said rigid and tiexible support means to said bucket halves includes a transverse Vshaft rigidly mounted in each of said bucket halves, each of said shafts being rigidly supported by its ends in the spaced side walls of its respective bucket half and extending therebetween, at least one lever-,arm rigidly mounted intermediate its ends on each of said shafts and extending normal to the shaft, said rigid elongated support means being pivotally connected with the ends of said lever arms toward said vouter walls, and said viiexible elongated support means being connected with the ends of said link of said exible elongated support means includes a pair of spaced cables, one of said pairs of 'cables being connected with one ofosaid bucket halves and the other one of said pairs of spaced cables being connected with the other of said bucket halves.

5. A grab bucket as dened by claim l in which said means providing said releasable connection includes a bottom slotted vertically split lifting block xedly disposed on the upper portion of the inner wall of said support housing on one side of the vertical center line of the support housing, said bail having lateral shoulders thereon adapted to be selectively engaged in the slot of said lifting block.

6. A grab bucket as dened by claim 5 including a vertically split curved guide rib projecting from the inner wall of said support housing on the sidev of the vertical center line of said support housing remote from Said lift block, said rib'being adapted to selectively guide said bail to the vertical center line of said support housing away from said lifting block when the bail is raised relative to the support housing.

References Cited in the tile of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 

